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Sandwiched between sea and cliffs on the
northern lip of Sandakan Bay,
SANDAKAN isn't an immediately
appealing city, but does make a good
base for day-trips to the Turtle Islands
Park , the Sepilok Orang-utan
Rehabilitation Centre and the Gomantong
Caves . Stretching west of the dense
downtown area is Jalan Leila, while to the
east, running up round the bay, is Jalan
Buli Sim-Sim. The heart of the town is the
colourful market along the harbour's
edge: here stalls sell baskets, fruits, scaly
fish, clothing and much else besides. A
fifteen-minute walk east of the town
centre, along Jalan Buli Sim-Sim, brings
you to Sandakan's modern mosque.
Beyond this is Kampung Buli Sim-Sim, the
water village around which Sandakan
expanded in the nineteenth century, its
countless photogenic shacks spread like
lilies out into the bay.

Sepilok Rehab a place for abandoned orang utans

Mother and baby orang utan at the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehab

Sepilok Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre
One of only three orang-utan sanctuaries in the world, the Sepilok
Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre 25km west of Sandakan, trains
young and domesticated orang-utans to fend for themselves. Close to
feeding time, a warden leads you to Station A, passing the nursery,
where baby orang-utans are taught elementary climbing skills - a
thrilling sight. There's a better chance of seeing semi-mature and
more independent orangs a thirty-minute hike from the Visitor Centre
at Station B, though this feeding station isn't always open.

Watch orang utans in their natural surroundings

Turtle island Park. See some of the rarest turtles lay their eggs

From Sandakan, take a two hour boat
ride to the Turtle Islands Park where
you can see some of the rarest turtles
laying their eggs. There are chalets
on the island for an overnight stay.

Peeping out of the Sulu Sea some 40km
north of Sandakan, three tiny islands
comprise Sabah's Turtle Islands National
Park, the favoured egg-laying sites of the
green and hawksbill turtles, varying
numbers of which haul themselves
laboriously above the high-tide mark to
bury their clutches of eggs. All three of
the park's islands (Pulau Selingaan, Pulau
Bakkungan Kechil and Pulau Gulisaan)
have a hatchery - though only Selingaan
has amenities for tourists.Turtles visit the
park every day of the year, but the peak
nesting time falls between July and
October. They begin to come ashore
around 7.30pm, then dig a nesting pit and
lay upwards of a hundred eggs. With
hatchings a nightly event, you're almost
guaranteed the stirring sight of scores of
determined little turtles wriggling up
through the sand. In the meantime,
Selingaan's quiet beaches are good for
swimming and sunbathing, or you can go
snorkelling off nearby Bakkungan Kechil.

Turtle Island

Jungle trekking
here is an
awesome
experience.
Exotic wild
orchids, Pitcher
plants that feed
on insects and
Rafflesia
the largest
flower in the
world can
be found in
Sabah.

SHANGRI-LA'S
RASA RIA RESORT

The hotel offers a range of water
sports, horse back riding, range of
recreational activities and even a kid's
club which takes care of children four
to 12 years old. Each guest rooms
come with a view of the South China
Sea and balconies.

HYATT REGENCY KINABALU

The Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort is
a deluxe-class hotel, Shangri-La's best
accommodations. The hotel features a
one-stop service offering all the
meeting facilities and support for a
productive and profitable event.

SHANGRI-LA'S
TANJUNG ARU RESORT

Situated within an eight-kilometre radius of downtown KK, the five
islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman Park (TAR Park) represent the most
westerly ripples of the undulating crocker mountain range. Largest of
the park's islands is Pulau Gaya, where a twenty-kilometre system of
trails snakes across the lowland rainforest. Most of these trails start on
the southern side of the island at Camp Bay, which also offers
pleasant enough swimming, but a more alluring alternative is Police
Beach, on the north coast. Boatmen demand extra for circling round to
this side of Gaya, but it's money well spent: the dazzling white-sand
bay is idyllic. Wildlife on Gaya includes hornbills, wild pigs, lizards,
snakes and macaques - which have been known to swim over to
nearby Pulau Sapi, a 25-acre islet off the northwestern coast of Gaya
that's popular with swimmers, snorkellers and picnickers. Though far
smaller than Gaya, Sapi too is ringed by trails.

The park's three other islands cluster together 2.5km west of Gaya.
The park headquarters is situated on crescent-shaped Pulau
Manukan, the most developed of all the park's islands, but boasting
fine beaches and coral. Across a narrow channel is tiny Pulau
Mamutik, which can be crossed on foot in fifteen minutes and has
excellent sands on either side of its jetty. Pulau Sulug is the most
remote of the islands and consequently the quietest. Its good coral
makes it popular with divers.

TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN PARK

SANDAKAN

Sandwiched between sea and cliffs on the northern lip of Sandakan
Bay, SANDAKAN isn't an immediately appealing city, but does make a
good base for day-trips to the Turtle Islands Park , the Sepilok
Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre and the Gomantong Caves .
Stretching west of the dense downtown area is Jalan Leila, while to the
east, running up round the bay, is Jalan Buli Sim-Sim. The heart of the
town is the colourful market along the harbour's edge: here stalls sell
baskets, fruits, scaly fish, clothing and much else besides. A
fifteen-minute walk east of the town centre, along Jalan Buli Sim-Sim,
brings you to Sandakan's modern mosque. Beyond this is Kampung
Buli Sim-Sim, the water village around which Sandakan expanded in
the nineteenth century, its countless photogenic shacks spread like
lilies out into the bay. Sandakan's less central addresses are
pinpointed according to their distances out of the downtown area,
hence "Mile 1 1/2", "Mile 3", and so on

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